Chapter 7- The True Hikaru
Inuyasha had been gone for almost a half an hour. Sango and Miroku went to walk around the perimeter of the village. Shippo had fallen asleep on Kirara while Kagome and Hikaru tidied up after dinner.
Kagome had been itching to talk to Hikaru alone, but in the past twenty minuets the 2 had said nothing to each other. "H...Hikaru?" She finally muttered.
"Yes Kagome?" The half demon asked nonchalantly. She had noticed the girl's anxiety growing and was relieved that now she was ready to say whatever she needed to say.
"Well, I was wondering what Inuyasha meant when he said that, well that your father was..." She let her voice trail off knowing how ridicules and petty she sounded.
Hikaru smirked, "Yes, we knew each other very well, a long time ago. We were very close."
Kagome inquired, "You say 'were', are you no longer friends?"
This caused the cat demon to laugh heartedly. "I think that's putting it nicely."
"What do you mean?" Then she stopped herself, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be pestering you like this."
"No, it's quiet alright Kagome. Come with me." Hikaru stood and waited for Kagome to join her.
When she did the 2 girls with raven black hair walked up the road, Kirara opened an eye and Kagome smiled, "I'll be back Kirara, watch over Shippo for me." The demon nodded then went back to sleep.
Kagome followed her into the woods careful not to fall too far behind. They were walking in pitch black darkness, listening to night creatures scurry about when Kagome tripped on a tree root and fell into Hikaru's back. The half demon didn't budge but turned to help the girl gain her balance. "I'm sorry Kagome, I forget that you do not have the senses that I do. What I want to show you is not much farther." She turned and kept walking, holding out her right arm a little so that Kagome could hold on and make it safely through the woods.
Finally they came to a small over grown trail. Hikaru took three steps in then crouched behind a bush. "Come Kagome, look."
Kagome hesitantly followed her, when she peered through the bush she saw a road. The moon had finally come out from its hiding place in the clouds and shone on the earth below it.
"This is where I first met Inuyasha." Hikaru sat on the grass by the bush and Kagome sat with her and listened.
"I was only 7 or 8, I can't remember now, but I had an adventurous spirit, that was hard for my father to keep up with. One day I was playing in the valley where..." Hikaru stopped for a moment gaining control of her wavering voice, "The valley where Miroku and Inuyasha were kind enough to bury the villages. I was playing there when I caught a strange scent in the air, one I had never smelled before..."
Flash back
A 7 year old Hikaru lay on her back in the grassy valley by her village. It was a beautiful day. Her blue demon stripes had not yet appeared on her face, for she was still a young girl and not a matured demon. She watched the clouds soar high up in the blue sky and wondered how they got there.
Maybe clouds are made from dew. She thought. Dew always disappears in late afternoon, maybe it becomes clouds by midday. She giggled at the thought and tried to imagine watching the dew rise up into the air. She loved lying in the grass it tickled her sensitive skin, the sun was warm on her face. She took in a deep breath enjoying the smell of the wind, flowers, grass, and....
She sniffed again, what was that? This time she sat up and sniffed the air. Her green eyes cat-like scanned the horizon her ears, at this point her right ear was still intact, also scanned the area around her. She flipped over and on her hands and knees watched the grassy hills around her. Her tail, which was thin and less noticeable at her young age, was still as she preyed on this new scent. Its like a mixture of human, dog, and... something else...
She watched the woods which were yards away, that must be where its coming from, she thought. Hikaru looked over her shoulder to the village, knowing her father would be furious if she disappeared. Then she looked back at the woods, the curiosity got the best of her as she trotted cautiously towards the scent.
Hikaru stood upright, but crouched low through the brush. She tried to use the cat instincts her mother had tried to teach her before she left. Stay low, listen for everything, keep your eyes on everything, don't focus too much on your prey, it could always be a trap.
As the scent got stronger Hikaru got more excited she finally found a bush from where she could smell and watch whatever her prey was. She peered through it and saw a woman carrying a child. The child was dressed in red and had silver hair. He squirmed in her arms then despite her demands he jumped from her arms.
Hikaru observed him, dressed in read, big yellow eyes, long silvery hair, and ears... her hand lifted to her own black ears which were atop her head, she felt them with her clawed fingers. His ears are just like mine. She thought.
Before she realized it, the boy was sniffing the air and walking towards her location. If I can smell him, then he can... Hikaru knew the dangers of being discovered outside her village. Her father had warned her many times that people who did not know her could and would attack her just because of how she looked. The young girl looked down at her clawed finger tips, then back through the brush. The boy was getting too close, she stepped backward slowly, and that was when he pounced.
The boy jumped right through the bush trying to roar like a cub who could not. He took her by surprise and knocked her down to the ground. He tried to bite at her, but his fangs were not yet grown in. She, in turn bit his hand as it pushed down on her shoulders. He withdrew it and she rolled him to the grass, before she could take any advantage of her new position he pulled her hair, causing her to yelp. The boy laughed and she balled up her fist and punched him for it.
He was shocked for a moment then pushed her up and back through the bushes to the road. Hikaru tripped over a stone causing the silver haired boy to fall on top of her. He smugly smiled down on her.
"INUYASHA STOP!" the woman traveler called to the dog-boy. Hikaru took advantage of the moment to roll him once more. She raised her clawed fingers in the air ready to attack when her father's voice came in loud and clear, "HIKARU!"
She froze knowing that she was about to get into trouble for not only leaving the valley and the confines of the village, but fighting too. The dog boy pushed her off of him and went running behind his mother.
end of flashback
Kagome was giggling as Hikaru told her the version of how she and Inuyasha met. "That sounds like him." She said. Hikaru nodded in agreement.
"So, what happened next?" She asked.
"Well," Hikaru began, "Inuyasha and his mother were welcomed into my village but not by everyone. Some found it dangerous to have me there, let alone 2 half-demons. None-the-less they lived with us. Not in the same hut, but in the village. Most of the other children left us alone; we were each other's play mates." Hikaru sighed remembering the times they had talked about the neglect they felt by the other children. They had even curled up in each other's arms and vowed never to let anything come between them, especially a human. Her inner sarcasm loved the irony.
"Eventually we got older, we matured, and noticed each other in ways we had never realized before." Kagome silently listened as Hikaru's voice gradually filled with pain. "I... I fell in love with him. I tried to hide it at first, but it was to no avail. It was puppy love, it seems so foolish now, and yet..." she sighed.
"It was about this time that Inuyasha's mother passed away. He did not take it well. He refused to stay in the village, the villagers had begun to turn on him and I. They thought we were the reason for a drought that had gone on too long. They told us that I would be permitted to stay if he would leave. With his mother gone, he thought there was no reason for him to stay. He didn't even wake me up to say good bye. He just left one night."
A thick silence fell in the darkness around them. Kagome could see Hikaru's face twisted with pain. "He came back to visit, every few years. He would hide in the woods for a few days, and I would catch his scent and go to see him." She patted the grass that she and Kagome sat on, "We met here by moonlight. We would talk about everything, his adventures and mine and about... Kikyo. Do you know of her?"
Kagome's eyes lowered to the ground she tried to keep the distain from her voice, "Yes," she mumbled, "I know her."
Hikaru caught the disgust the girl had for the priestess, "I see we feel the same." She chuckled. She smiled in the darkness.
Inuyasha had been gone for almost a half an hour. Sango and Miroku went to walk around the perimeter of the village. Shippo had fallen asleep on Kirara while Kagome and Hikaru tidied up after dinner.
Kagome had been itching to talk to Hikaru alone, but in the past twenty minuets the 2 had said nothing to each other. "H...Hikaru?" She finally muttered.
"Yes Kagome?" The half demon asked nonchalantly. She had noticed the girl's anxiety growing and was relieved that now she was ready to say whatever she needed to say.
"Well, I was wondering what Inuyasha meant when he said that, well that your father was..." She let her voice trail off knowing how ridicules and petty she sounded.
Hikaru smirked, "Yes, we knew each other very well, a long time ago. We were very close."
Kagome inquired, "You say 'were', are you no longer friends?"
This caused the cat demon to laugh heartedly. "I think that's putting it nicely."
"What do you mean?" Then she stopped herself, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be pestering you like this."
"No, it's quiet alright Kagome. Come with me." Hikaru stood and waited for Kagome to join her.
When she did the 2 girls with raven black hair walked up the road, Kirara opened an eye and Kagome smiled, "I'll be back Kirara, watch over Shippo for me." The demon nodded then went back to sleep.
Kagome followed her into the woods careful not to fall too far behind. They were walking in pitch black darkness, listening to night creatures scurry about when Kagome tripped on a tree root and fell into Hikaru's back. The half demon didn't budge but turned to help the girl gain her balance. "I'm sorry Kagome, I forget that you do not have the senses that I do. What I want to show you is not much farther." She turned and kept walking, holding out her right arm a little so that Kagome could hold on and make it safely through the woods.
Finally they came to a small over grown trail. Hikaru took three steps in then crouched behind a bush. "Come Kagome, look."
Kagome hesitantly followed her, when she peered through the bush she saw a road. The moon had finally come out from its hiding place in the clouds and shone on the earth below it.
"This is where I first met Inuyasha." Hikaru sat on the grass by the bush and Kagome sat with her and listened.
"I was only 7 or 8, I can't remember now, but I had an adventurous spirit, that was hard for my father to keep up with. One day I was playing in the valley where..." Hikaru stopped for a moment gaining control of her wavering voice, "The valley where Miroku and Inuyasha were kind enough to bury the villages. I was playing there when I caught a strange scent in the air, one I had never smelled before..."
Flash back
A 7 year old Hikaru lay on her back in the grassy valley by her village. It was a beautiful day. Her blue demon stripes had not yet appeared on her face, for she was still a young girl and not a matured demon. She watched the clouds soar high up in the blue sky and wondered how they got there.
Maybe clouds are made from dew. She thought. Dew always disappears in late afternoon, maybe it becomes clouds by midday. She giggled at the thought and tried to imagine watching the dew rise up into the air. She loved lying in the grass it tickled her sensitive skin, the sun was warm on her face. She took in a deep breath enjoying the smell of the wind, flowers, grass, and....
She sniffed again, what was that? This time she sat up and sniffed the air. Her green eyes cat-like scanned the horizon her ears, at this point her right ear was still intact, also scanned the area around her. She flipped over and on her hands and knees watched the grassy hills around her. Her tail, which was thin and less noticeable at her young age, was still as she preyed on this new scent. Its like a mixture of human, dog, and... something else...
She watched the woods which were yards away, that must be where its coming from, she thought. Hikaru looked over her shoulder to the village, knowing her father would be furious if she disappeared. Then she looked back at the woods, the curiosity got the best of her as she trotted cautiously towards the scent.
Hikaru stood upright, but crouched low through the brush. She tried to use the cat instincts her mother had tried to teach her before she left. Stay low, listen for everything, keep your eyes on everything, don't focus too much on your prey, it could always be a trap.
As the scent got stronger Hikaru got more excited she finally found a bush from where she could smell and watch whatever her prey was. She peered through it and saw a woman carrying a child. The child was dressed in red and had silver hair. He squirmed in her arms then despite her demands he jumped from her arms.
Hikaru observed him, dressed in read, big yellow eyes, long silvery hair, and ears... her hand lifted to her own black ears which were atop her head, she felt them with her clawed fingers. His ears are just like mine. She thought.
Before she realized it, the boy was sniffing the air and walking towards her location. If I can smell him, then he can... Hikaru knew the dangers of being discovered outside her village. Her father had warned her many times that people who did not know her could and would attack her just because of how she looked. The young girl looked down at her clawed finger tips, then back through the brush. The boy was getting too close, she stepped backward slowly, and that was when he pounced.
The boy jumped right through the bush trying to roar like a cub who could not. He took her by surprise and knocked her down to the ground. He tried to bite at her, but his fangs were not yet grown in. She, in turn bit his hand as it pushed down on her shoulders. He withdrew it and she rolled him to the grass, before she could take any advantage of her new position he pulled her hair, causing her to yelp. The boy laughed and she balled up her fist and punched him for it.
He was shocked for a moment then pushed her up and back through the bushes to the road. Hikaru tripped over a stone causing the silver haired boy to fall on top of her. He smugly smiled down on her.
"INUYASHA STOP!" the woman traveler called to the dog-boy. Hikaru took advantage of the moment to roll him once more. She raised her clawed fingers in the air ready to attack when her father's voice came in loud and clear, "HIKARU!"
She froze knowing that she was about to get into trouble for not only leaving the valley and the confines of the village, but fighting too. The dog boy pushed her off of him and went running behind his mother.
end of flashback
Kagome was giggling as Hikaru told her the version of how she and Inuyasha met. "That sounds like him." She said. Hikaru nodded in agreement.
"So, what happened next?" She asked.
"Well," Hikaru began, "Inuyasha and his mother were welcomed into my village but not by everyone. Some found it dangerous to have me there, let alone 2 half-demons. None-the-less they lived with us. Not in the same hut, but in the village. Most of the other children left us alone; we were each other's play mates." Hikaru sighed remembering the times they had talked about the neglect they felt by the other children. They had even curled up in each other's arms and vowed never to let anything come between them, especially a human. Her inner sarcasm loved the irony.
"Eventually we got older, we matured, and noticed each other in ways we had never realized before." Kagome silently listened as Hikaru's voice gradually filled with pain. "I... I fell in love with him. I tried to hide it at first, but it was to no avail. It was puppy love, it seems so foolish now, and yet..." she sighed.
"It was about this time that Inuyasha's mother passed away. He did not take it well. He refused to stay in the village, the villagers had begun to turn on him and I. They thought we were the reason for a drought that had gone on too long. They told us that I would be permitted to stay if he would leave. With his mother gone, he thought there was no reason for him to stay. He didn't even wake me up to say good bye. He just left one night."
A thick silence fell in the darkness around them. Kagome could see Hikaru's face twisted with pain. "He came back to visit, every few years. He would hide in the woods for a few days, and I would catch his scent and go to see him." She patted the grass that she and Kagome sat on, "We met here by moonlight. We would talk about everything, his adventures and mine and about... Kikyo. Do you know of her?"
Kagome's eyes lowered to the ground she tried to keep the distain from her voice, "Yes," she mumbled, "I know her."
Hikaru caught the disgust the girl had for the priestess, "I see we feel the same." She chuckled. She smiled in the darkness.